Adjustable date indicator



Jan. 19, 1960 F. o. LUENBERGER ADJUSTABLE DATE INDICATOR Filed Nov. 12,1957 INVENTOR. E/VBERGEE,

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United States ADJUSTABLE DATE INDICATOR Frederick 0. Luenberger, LosAngeles, Calif assignor to U.S. Electrical Motors, Inc., Los Angeles,Calif., a corporation of California Application November 12, 1957,Serial No. 695,676 1 Claim. (Cl. 116-133) This invention relates to ameans for indicating when an act in the future need be performed. Forexample, an embodiment of the invention will be described, useful todetermine when lubricant had been last changed in a well for supplyingsuch lubricant.

It is one of the objects of this invention to provide a simple andeffective date indicator of this general character.

It is another object of this invention to provide a drain plug for thewell, that serves also to accommodate the indicator. In this way, theperson charged with draining and refilling the oil or other lubricant isreminded to keep the indicator properly adjusted to show when the lastoil change took place.

This invention possesses many other advantages, and has other objectswhich may be made more clearly apparent from a consideration of oneembodiment of the invention. For this purpose, there is shown a form inthe drawings accompanying and forming a part of the presentspecification. This form will now be described in detail, illustratingthe general principles of the invention; but it is to be understood thatthis detailed description is not to be taken in a limiting sense, sincethe scope of this invention is best defined by the appended claim.

Referring to the drawings:

Figure 1 is an elevation of a vertical electric motor in which theinvention is used;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view, taken along a planecorresponding to line 2-2 of Fig. l; and

Fig. 3 is a view taken from the left-hand side of Fig. 2 and asindicated by the line 33.

In Fig. l a housing structure 1 is indicated which may serve to house avertical electric motor arranged, for example, at the top of a well.This housing is shown merely diagrammatically. It includes aweather-proof top or cover 2, and the casing proper 3. Within the casing3 there is provided an oil well 4 (Fig. 2) adapted to provide an oilreservoir for lubricating at least one of the bearings of the motor.

The oil reservoir can be drained through a nipple 5 that is threadedinto the wall of the casing 3. The nipple 5 may be closed in anyappropriate manner as, for example, by the aid of a plug or cover 6 thatis internally threaded and adapted to engage the external threads on theleft-hand end of nipple 5.

The closure or cover 6 is provided with an end flange 7 having a planesurface 8. Between this flange 7 and the left-hand end of nipple 5 aresilient gasket or washer 9 may be provided. In this way, the nipple 5is sealed ice by appropriate tightening of the cover 6 over the nipple5. In order to facilitate tightening or removal of the cover or closure6, a radial slot 10 is provided on the exterior of the cover 6 so that atool may be engaged in the slot for loosening or tightening the cover 6.

When it is desired to replenish or replace lubricant in the well 4, thecover 6 is removed and the oil or other lubricant drains out through thenipple 5. Then the cover 6 can be replaced and the oil well 4 refilled.

In order to indicate when the refilling took place so as to determine,at a later time, the age of the lubricant in the well 4, use is made ofa pair of disks 11 and 12 (see particularly Fig. 3). The disk 11 extendsoutwardly beyond the disk 12. It carries indices 13 corresponding toyears, and adapted to cooperate with a triangular index mark 14 on theexterior of the flange 7. The inner disk 12 carries indicia 15corresponding to the months of the year. For the particular setting ofthe indicator in Fig. 3, angular adjustment of these two disks is suchthat it indicates October, 1957 as the month in which oil or lubricantwas changed.

In order to support the disks 11 and 12 upon the cover 6, use is made ofa machine screw 16 threadedly engaging a central threaded aperture 17 inthe flange 7.

In order to adjust the setting of the two disks 11 and 12, the screw 16is loosened and the disks angularly moved to the desired indicatingpositions. Then the screw 16 is tightened to hold the disks 11 and 12 inadjusted positlon.

The adjustment of the disks is such that the year and month fall in thesame radial line as the index 14.

Instead of indicating the year and month of the time when the lubricantwas renewed, the date indication may be such as to correspond to themonth and year when the lubricant is to be changed in the future.

The inventor claims:

In combination, a lubricant reservoir, a drain conduit in the bottom ofsaid reservoir, a removable closure plug carried by said conduit, athreaded bore formed in a surface of said plug, a screw threaded in saidbore, said screw having a head, a first disk axially mounted on saidscrew behind said head, a second disk superposed on said first disk andaxially mounted on said screw behind said head, both said'disks beingrotationally adjustable on said screw, said first disk being of largerdiameter than said second disk to provide an exposed periphery on saidfirst disk, cooperating date indicia inscribed on the exposed peripheryof said first disk and on the periphery of said second disk, and anindex mark inscribed on said surface of said plug adjacent the peripheryof said first disk, whereby loosening of said screw permits relativerotational adjustment of said disks to denote desired date informationwith reference to said index mark, and tightening of said screw clampssaid disks in adjusted position between said surface and said head.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS828,353 Walsh Aug. 14, 1906 1,705,866 Johnson Mar. 19, 1929 2,707,452Schwartz May 3, 1955 2,820,430 Pulaski Jan. 21, 1958

